Long time, no post! It's been rather silent lately on the ol' blog, mostly as a result of not having a lot to say. My health is still being an issue, and most frustratingly stopping me from sewing/drawing/creating everything I want to. It's been a year without even getting a firm diagnosis, but I'm currently waiting on some test results so hopefully they turn up something!
To cheer myself up, I decided to give my "new" hat a spin. I picked it up a couple months ago at an antique store, but the weather has been too miserable to wear it. Luckily today the sky was bright and the wind was minimal (I still went with two hat pins, just to be on the safe side!). I'm not very good at dating hats, but this one seems late 1930s/early 1940's to me. Any hat experts out there with a second opinion? It unfortunately doesn't have any sort of label, so I can't research it's origins.
I'm calling this colour scheme raspberry chocolate. I don't wear brown nearly as much as I should! Black tends to be my neutral of choice, but I'm really loving the brown-red combo. Most of this outfit is modern-ish with a vintage style. The jacket is about 12 years old and the skirt is a hand-me-down from my grandmother (what can I say, she has nice clothes!). The brooch is the compressed heather one I shared a few posts ago, and the shoes were a birthday gift to myself last year bought on clearance from DSW.
I'm continuing my attempts at nail art. I hand-painted some dots and a heart for valentines day:
And tried a swirly thing with my new nail stamper this week:
I have some more nail stamp plates arriving in the mail (hopefully soon), and am excited to continue experimenting. Working with water-based nail polish is a bit different, which means I'm having to invent my own stamping technique. Unlike traditional polishes (where you need to work quickly), water-based polishes seem to stamp better if left to dry for a couple minutes first.
I've also been contemplating dying my hair. Currently, it's my natural brown with more than a few greys throughout, but I'm dreaming of a deep red, burgundy, or maybe even purple...
I can't use traditional dyes with my chemical sensitivities, but I'm contemplating either a semi-permanent or henna. The problem with semi-permanent is Manic Panic is the only brand I can find that doesn't contain fragrance (I'm allergic), but I've heard awful things about dye transfer. I like to be able to wet-set my hair, as well as wear vintage hats, without worrying about staining! Henna also scares me, as I've read it's difficult to dye over if you hate it. It also loosens natural curls and I'm not sure if my hair would become difficult to set/curl... Anyone had experience with either product? I would love some advice.
I am also eagerly awaiting the Toronto Antique and Vintage Market at the Exhibition place next weekend. I rarely get into the city and am looking forward to hopefully scoring some new vintage pieces. My friend is going with me, and I have given him strict instructions to keep an eye out for vintage hairstyling tools, clothing, and vintage phonographs (like I have anywhere to put one! haha). I know most of my readers don't live in Ontario, but if anyone else is going let me know and we can maybe have a mini-meetup or grab a coffee or something.
I hope everyone had a great weekend!
That's All.
